Moyes’ boys are off to flying start
Hammers cruise to give boss dream return
Not since Hasselhoff has a David breathed such life into something that seemed so dead in the water. West Ham did not just win, they pulverised relegation rivals Bournemouth here.
David Moyes could not have wished for a better start to his second stint. A first home win since September, and a first Premier League victory by four or more goals since 2007.
to put that into perspective, Moyes was still six years from leaving Everton for Manchester United. the Scot will not want to get ahead of himself, but what a reintroduction this was.
there were even ‘oles’ as West Ham played keep-ball towards the end. Mark Noble led by example, while Sebastien Haller scored a wonderful scissor kick.
Felipe Anderson put in his best performance in a West Ham shirt this season, and deserved to be the man who completed the scoring in the second half.
VAR tried to deny him that, looking for a shoelace offside, but the goal was good and so were West Ham over 90 minutes. out of the relegation zone they go.
And in it go Bournemouth for the first time since 2017. Eddie Howe’s side were, to put it politely, abysmal with the 42-year-old saying injuries are partly to blame.
‘I’d love to take credit,’ said Moyes. ‘But the players have to take it. Mark Noble, he epitomises everything.’ on Anderson, he added: ‘I’d been asking him if he’s a Brazilian. Brazilians score goals, Brazilians make the difference, make us all excited. All I’d said to him was, “Give us a Brazilian goal”. to be fair to him, he did.’
With Bournemouth verging on double figures for injuries, Howe said of the mood inside his dressing room: ‘I don’t think it takes a rocket scientist to work out it is damaged. But in these moments, when things are difficult, it’s all a character test. How do we respond?’
the response was pitiful here. there were 17 minutes on the clock when Noble tried his luck from 22 yards and the ball took a wicked deflection off Lewis Cook.
that diverted the ball into the bottom left corner as Aaron Ramsdale dived to the other.
By the time Bournemouth were ready to restart, the celebrations had died down. Noble was having none of it. He waved his arms in the air, demanding the crowd make noise.
they obliged, and bums were off seats in the 25th minute when West Ham made it 2-0.
this time, Robert Snodgrass fed Ryan Fredericks who crossed from the right. It was behind Haller but the Frenchman met it, sending a stunning scissor kick into the far corner.
there was no celebration from Haller, despite this being the best volley seen here since Andy Carroll’s overhead kick against Crystal Palace in January 2017.
But Anderson summed up what all of us were feeling upon seeing this strike, as the Brazilian responded by placing both of his hands on his head in disbelief.
Haller had two goals since August before this. He will not bag many better in 2020.
Before half-time, Noble barged his way into the box with Harry Wilson on his back. the 32-yearold fell to ground and referee Graham Scott pointed to the spot. VAR double-checked, confirmed, and Noble sent Ramsdale the wrong way for 3-0.
Bournemouth were shellshocked as they headed in for the half-time break.
on the day of the World Darts Championship final, and given how poorly they had played, it truly would take a comeback of Lazarus proportions, to borrow a quote from the late commentator Sid Waddell.
Any chance of the visitors salvaging something was completely ruled out in the 66th minute when Declan Rice pumped a ball towards the left where Anderson was waiting.
A fine first touch saw him leave Simon Francis for dust. one on one with Ramsdale, he scored.
In the 74th minute, Aaron Cresswell committed a challenge on Ryan Fraser that appeared dangerous. It was the type of foul that drew gasps from West Ham’s own fans.
they knew it was bad. Cresswell got the ball but he wiped Fraser out with it, and Scott showed the left back a red card. then VAR got involved.
they told their man on the ground to show a yellow instead which, in truth, was generous. A clear and obvious mistake this was not.
the closest Bournemouth got to a goal was when Dominic Solanke directed a free header on to the post from five yards. the ball rebounded safely back in Lukasz Fabianski’s arms.
other than that, they were toothless against a club facing a fifth consecutive home league defeat for the first time since 1931. Bournemouth appear in big trouble.
there was no official welcome home for Moyes to the London Stadium prior to kick- off. No announcement over the tannoy, or walk on to the pitch to wave.
He let his players do his reintroducing for him. there is a long way to go, but the David Moyes era, part two, has got off to the perfect start.
WEST HAM (4-4-2): Fabianski 7; Fredericks 7, Ogbonna 7.5, Balbuena 7.5, Cresswell 6.5; Snodgrass 7.5 (Masuaku 83min), NOBLE 9, Rice 8.5, Fornals 7.5; Anderson 8.5 (Lanzini 68, 6), Haller 8.5.
Subs not used: Roberto, Zabaleta, Sanchez,
Diop, Ajeti. Scorers: Noble (17, 35 pen), Haller (25), Anderson (66). Booked: Cresswell. Manager: David Moyes 8. BOURNEMOUTH (4-3-3): Ramsdale 5; Francis 4, Mepham 4, S Cook 4, Rico 3 (Stanislas 45, 5.5); L Cook 4, Gosling 4 (Simpson 68, 5.5), Lerma 4; H Wilson 3 (Fraser 45, 5.5), C Wilson 4, Solanke 4. Subs not used: Boruc, Surman, Billing, Dobre. Booked: Rico, Cook. Manager: Eddie Howe 4. Referee: Graham Scott 6. Attendance: 59,917.